ernihumberto

For any number of reason they want. I personally do it for new experiences. Most of my renovations are to upgrade a bike with newer components to improve its feel or aesthetic appearance.

Chombi1 

Yup!, my almost brand new S7's wrap around screen asploded on me after a very low level drop on to our office floor, even with a nice Otter Box "protective" case. Tried to get the screen replaced but all the repair shops I took it to said that it would cost too much to do so (I think it's mostly the labor to get the old screen off which is glued on to the guts of the phone)..... so I had to get a new phone instead......

jockotobling

I love bikes. It is fun to build them up. Not so much fun doing maintenance, for me. I do like the look of modern bikes too, but the old ones are readily and cheaply available at garage sales and Craigslist. I like the look of a carbon fiber bike with disk brakes and a single chainring with a big cogs on the back as much as a graceful lugged frame brakeless fixie. The riding part is fun in a way that different from motorcycling, which I use to enjoy before Southern California traffic got so bad. The riding also keeps me fit in my old age, and reduces stress.

riccofiori

Guest User 1923242

If you get involved with newer bike designs you are forced to buy extra tools and odd shaped parts designed primarily to cost more and extract more bucks from your pocket...Old bikes ride very well and as we get older we slow down so extra FAST is not a big concern...Plus we get to bring our old bikes back to life and that is very satisfying....

Brian880

The modern triple triangle bike has been around since 1880. How long have your pos cars been around. An old bike connects you to the life and exertions of all who have had it before. Older bikes will have been made not for a trend but for a utility; simplicity is GOD; wonderfully divine and elegant. I have had to make my living with a bicycle. I wrench bicycles for people who need the utility they represent. It is that connection. God bless you and have a nice day.

noglider 

@Brian880, I loved reading that. May God be pleased with you.

McBTC

To anyone like me who has owned and ridden quite a few bikes over the decades, it is not news that bikes have changed little over the years since long before Schwinn made the first Continental... bikes like Stumpjumpers ushered in an era of off-road cycling (~'81) and that was before the big advance,,, simply adding shocks on the forks and then the frame. Little things make big differences in cycling. The LBS owner who sold me one of the first Stumpjumpers told me around that time (~1985) the most significant thing to hit road biking was aerobars (e.g., Greg Lemond winning the TdF in 1989). I can't think of anything since then that can match that modest incremental improvement.

johnspack

Stupidly addictive? For someone like me who didn't ride for 30 years, restoring a 30 year old bike just makes sense. It's all steel and chrome, rides perfect on snow and ice, lots of heft. Perfect for learning how to service bikes, much easier than modern bikes.
I was still able to put a modern drivetrain on it. Because why not?

Stormy Archer

Hm, well perhaps not elitist. But, as someone who enjoys watching YouTube videos on everything from beehive transplants to steam engine maintenance, I like to think that we can sometimes understand others' special interests.

Stormy Archer

I know this is a bike forum, but in case you're wondering... part of that may be because Samsung phones use AMOLED screens, which only they manufacture. Other companies use more standardized screens which will run you about 20 bucks for the part. Also, you know that display is actually probably fine, but its extremely difficult to replace just the broken glass because its glued onto the screen. The more you know!

mrMike88

Good question - for me it's the fact that these machines built 50 years ago still work and if they need repair or tuneup, it will be straightforward and not cost an unreasonable amount. I always have admired bikes as great and refined inventions, and I have also enjoyed every bike I've owned (which is just a few). I understand very well the love for a lot of "vintage" things - I also really admire old great pianos (I'm a pianist who has played at least a bazillion pianos) for the same reason. I'm like the fact that the English 3-speed I rode for years would still be usable if I could find it (I gave it to my brother and who knows what happened to it lo these many years ago). I compare it to cars and other machines and note the simplicity and economy of the design.

JaccoW

Not a problem that only Samsung has. People think they want thinner phones with smaller bezels. One way to do this is to glue everything together and integrate several different components into one item.

When you have to replace a broken screen you also have to replace the glass digitizer (the 'touch' part) and often a few buttons, light sensor and sometimes even the camera and part of the structure of the phone itself.
That's what makes this expensive. You are in fact replacing half the phone.

You could theoretically replace only the glass digitizer but since they are glued to the screen, removing and replacing it is a specialty job that runs a high risk of breaking the screen itself. Hardly any shop wants to risk incurring $200 in damages for a $20 job.
So they will only replace the entire unit.

KonAaron Snake 

I'll have you know that I paid $25 for a USSR wrist watch that works splendidly!

(I can only afford to pay stupid money for one hobby)

I've been riding a CF Roubaix with a suspension fork in the front...it's a wonderful bike. That said, I took out my Koga Miyata tourer for the first time in ages, and was struck by how much it dampens everything without a spring. It might not be fast, but god damn if it doesn't ride like the smoothest thing on two wheels.

Old bikes, new bikes...they all have their charms. Unless they have IGH

Bandera

If you have to ask the question you wouldn't understand the answer.

raria

I've read through most of the thread responses and I found people explained things wonderfully well. Very articulate and nuasenced responses, so much so I'm going garage sale shopping this weekend!

noglider 

Clipless pedals were a big improvement for me but not for everyone. Some argue that indexed shifting are a big change. And tires have improved over time. There have really been lots of advances, but they're not essential for everyone.

AdventureManCO 

This is a great thread. I didn't grow up around these bikes, so I don't have the 'fond memories' angle there. My dad had an old Nishiki in the garage that I didn't think one way or another about.

I helped out at a non-profit that fixed old bikes and donated them. Many of the bikes went to Africa, and because old road bike didn't get sent over there, there were more of them around. A very kind gentleman, and one of the owners of the non-profit, knew that I didn't have a road bike, and gave me a Miyata 710, in steel gray color. I was fresh out of college and having a bicycle to get around way simply lovely. I had that bike for a long time and only once I sold it did I realize how much I missed it. What a great bicycle and it opened my eyes to vintage bikes.

My bicycle interests grew dormant for the first few years I had kids, with a mountain bike hanging up in the rafters. But about a year ago, for some reason, BAM! The passion awoke, and now I've got something like 14 or 17 (who really knows) bikes, mostly old road bikes, in the garage. I pulled down the mountain bike, fixed it up, and now it sees use as well (including commuting to work just yesterday). I ride about 1/4 of them, will fix another 1/4 of them, and will probably donate or trade the other 1/2 of them for something new (ahem, old) and different.

It ticks a lot of boxes...satisfies a lot of urges...scratches a lot of the itches...well, you get it. I love working with my hands. Check! I love rescuing something someone else threw away but that can be rescued, fixed and appreciated. Check! I love the beauty and lines of these old bikes. Check! I love learning something new and challenging. Check! I love donating my time to help others experience bikes. Check! I love doing something that can be a lifelong healthy interest and passion. Check!

steelbikeguy

as an electrical engineer, I can say that the technology used to create the sub-micron features of modern integrated circuits is fascinating! In large part, it's the result of very clever folks coming up with clever ideas to get smaller and smaller transistors, which is why your electronics are getting smarter and faster.

Analog electronics, i.e. the stuff that isn't just on or off, is another fascinating field that is heavily dependent on developing a feel or intuition. I have books that are a compilation of stories of how tough problems were solved with a remarkable bit of insight and cleverness. This level of skill and knowledge is developed with experience (usually painful experiences), and many of the best analog engineers are the graybeards. Personally, I would call this a form of craftmanship, although the results aren't always visually pleasing.

Bob Pease was a well known analog expert at National Semiconductor, and while a very skilled engineer, his prototype circuits were frightening to look at!


Steve in Peoria

RobbieTunes

A non-fiction bike guy.

RobbieTunes

Intangibility.

One of the reasons I like old bikes, especially racing bikes, is once in a while, you meet someone who's riding a bike, but not a road bike. You see their face when they get on this fast, smooth, quiet old bike with liquid movement, silky hubs, and it's solid, and real, and so affordable, giving it away creates a feeling in both of you that just can't be created with modern bikes.

Happyday

I will not say either vintage bikes are obsolete or modern carbon bikes are ugly. It depends on which aspect you look at each. I have a 1986 steel bike and a 2015 carbon bike. I love both. I ride both, and I have learnt to service both bikes myself. The steel bike is now more than 30 years old, and my carbon more than 3.

Both I like, and based on different aspects. They have their merits and demerits, both the frame and the shifting/braking components.

If I am only allow to choose one to keep, I will choose my steel bike. If I am going to race, my carbon one with modern gear. Those who love steel bike with friction shifting gear claim that they possess superb riding skill. Those who love carbon love the reduced weight and index shifting aspect.

In conclusion, modern bike has overtaken the vintage. Lucky I still maintaining one.

unterhausen

Car people work themselves up over old cars even though the driving experience is horrible. Uncomfortable, loud, smelly, unsafe. Most of them have the handling of a whale on skates. I had a 54 Belair for a while, what a horrible car. I saw one while I was riding over the weekend and I just laughed. Only thing good about it was that it was almost comfortable to sleep in the back seat. Who would restore such a monstrosity? Somebody that can't afford a 55, I suppose.

In comparison, an old bike can be indistinguishable from a new bike in performance. That is, if you don't let confirmation bias cloud your judgement. And new parts just bolt on.

I actually do understand the appeal of restoring old cars, but an old car person not understanding the appeal of restoring old bikes is pretty funny. Any reason you might want to restore an old car translates directly to restoring old bikes.

Stormy Archer

You're not telling me anything I don't already know, but thanks!

The part itself being more expensive is a problem that only Samsung phones have from what I know. Iphone screens are like 20 bucks. Also often the screen + digitizer assembly is glued onto the rest of the phone, so I imagine some guys aren't too bad at working on that glue stuff. It doesn't make sense to me why 200$ in damage would be risked from trying to repair a screen with broken glass,

Stormy Archer

That one needs no explanation, but if anyone could help me understand why beautiful women are attracted to men, I'd love to know!